History Kösem Sultan describes as the most powerful and influential woman in the Ottoman Empire. Her life was full of political and family intrigues. But no one questions its most important role in the development of Turkey. Kösem's meteoric rise occurred at a time when the role of women was extremely small in Turkish society, and she had to be completely subordinate to a man. This article is devoted to the circumstances of political success, as well as the life story of Kesem Sultan. So, let's begin.
Kösem Sultan: history, biography
Most researchers are inclined to believe that the woman’s real name is Anastasia. The future ruler was born in 1590 and, presumably, was from the Balkans, Greek or Bosnian by nationality. At the age of 15, the girl was sold into the harem of the Turkish Sultan Ahmed I. There is no exact information about why Anastasia became the Sultan’s concubine; perhaps she was captured or sold for debts.
In Turkey, Balkan names were not highly respected, so the girl received a new name Mahpeyker, translated from Turkish as “moon-faced,” since she had a rather smooth, round face. Immediately after Mahpeyker found herself at the court of the Sultan, thanks to her character and leadership skills, she quickly began to gain her position, as a result in the harem they began to call her Kösem, with which name she is best known in Turkey. Translated from ancient Turkish, Kösem means a sheep that leads its flock; according to another etymology, this word means “beloved, desired.”
Career
Illness and enormous growth prevented Kösen from finishing school and receiving an education. He does not have a profession, but Sultan, from childhood, was accustomed by his parents to work on the land and with domestic animals. Therefore, farm labor was initially the only source of income.
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The growth of Sultan Kösen compared to other people
The fame that fell on the “Turkish Gulliver” after recording record growth in the Guinness Book of Records opened the door to Kösen to the world of show business. The giant is often invited to various television projects, for which he receives a fee.
Kösem among the favorites of Sultan Ahmed I
During her stay in the harem, the young girl attracted the attention of Sultan Ahmed with her beauty and gradually turned from among her favorite concubines into her legal wife. But Kösem was by no means the Sultan’s first favorite; moreover, the mother of his first-born was a Greek woman with less influence named Mahfiruz. However, the woman gave birth to a large number of children from Sultan Ahmed. Thus, two of her sons, Ibrahim and Murad, later became sultans, and she successfully married three of her daughters to influential statesmen of the empire.
Kösem's foreign contemporaries, who visited the court of the rulers of the Turkish Empire, described her as a very beautiful and intelligent woman who had many talents. Thus, it is repeatedly mentioned that she sings and dances well, and also speaks several foreign languages. In addition, as mentioned in history, Kösem Sultan had a significant influence on the ruler and, in order not to lose him, showed restraint and wisdom in her actions.
Personality[ | ]
In the Historical Dictionary of the Ottoman Empire, Kösem is named one of the most famous women of the palace.[3] While Kösem Sultan was the favorite, she was described mainly as a beautiful and intelligent woman. She did not have much power or opportunity. Pietro della Valle wrote about her that she was “more sweet than beautiful”[12]. In 1612, the Venetian ambassador Simone Contarini described Kösem as a woman “beautiful and insightful and, in addition... possessing many talents... She sings beautifully, as a result of which she continues to enjoy the love of the Sultan... Not that everyone respects her, but in some matters she is listened to , and she is the favorite of the ruler, who wants her to be constantly with him... <...> She restrains herself with great wisdom from talking too often [with the Sultan] about serious matters and affairs of the state.” Such prudence was aimed at not losing the favor of the Sultan, who did not intend to depend on women. Contarini's successor as ambassador, Christopher Vallières, wrote about Kösem in 1616: “She can do whatever she wants with the Sultan, and has completely captured his heart, and nothing is refused to her.”[11] Until recent years, she retained her beauty. As Simon Contarini spoke of her in 1645: “the main queen, the famous Kösem Sultan, old, but still beautiful”[35].
Everything changed when Kösem Sultan became valid. For twenty-five years she was valide under Murad and Ibrahim, and for another three years she bore the title of “senior valide sultan” ( buyuk valide
) with his grandson Mehmed[36]. Europeans remember Hurrem, but the Turks consider Kösem the most powerful of women. Pierce calls Kösem "the last of the bright and influential Haseki women of the Sultanate."[37] Kösem was “skilled in conspiracies and intrigues”[38], and she is credited with the merit of placing both sons on the throne and changing the order of succession[37].
According to the Encyclopedia of Islam, she left a memory of herself as a woman of “magnitude, generosity and high intelligence.”[39]
Images[ | ]
Engraving by M. Lorca
Image of a wet nurse
Painting from auction
Europeans have always been interested in what Kösem Sultan looked like. Therefore, in the absence of her images, they began to pass off images of other people as portraits of Kösem. In 1688, the book “Thesaurus exoticorum” was published in Hamburg. The authors placed an engraving with the signature “Zelome Sultane” as an image of Kösem Sultan[40]. However, this is the work of Melchior Lorca[41], who died in 1583[42].
The image of Mehmed IV's wet nurse, the slave of Kizlyar Agha, who lived in the Sultan's harem with her son and was captured by the Knights of Malta in 1644, is used as an image of Kösem Sultan mainly in popular and fiction literature. .
An untitled and unsigned painting of a woman breastfeeding her baby was sold at Sotheby's on October 4, 2012. According to Sotheby's experts, it dates back to the second quarter of the 17th century, the author of the painting is an unknown artist from the circle of Franz Hermann and Hans Gemminger[45]. These are Austrian artists who were part of the delegation of the embassy sent by Ferdinand II to Murad IV in 1628[46]. According to the conclusion accompanying the painting, it depicts “the beloved wife of Sultan Ahmed 1 (1603–1617), known as Kösem or Mahpeyker Sultan, breastfeeding her son, the future Sultan Murad IV (1623–1640) or the future Sultan Ibrahim (1640– 1648)"[45]. It is unknown what the grounds were for such a conclusion. Kösem could not have been a nursing mother in 1628: Ibrahim was born in 1615, Murad in 1612; by the time the artists arrived in Istanbul, Kösem’s sons were 16 and 13 years old[21].
Ilber Ortaila's article in Milliyet included a portrait of Josephine Grassini as an image of Kösem.[47]
Kösem during the reign of Sultans Mustafa I and Osman II
In 1617, Sultan Ahmed I died suddenly at the age of 28, and the throne was taken by his closest relative Mustafa I, who had a number of physical and mental illnesses. In Turkish history, very often a new sultan, after the death of the previous one, destroyed his closest relatives who could lay claim to the throne. Therefore, the lives of Kösem and her children were in danger, but she managed to convince the new Sultan of her loyalty to him.
In 1618, Mustafa was removed from the throne, but his life was spared; at this time, Kösem was in virtual exile in the old palace. The fourteen-year-old son of Ahmed I from his first wife, Osman, became the new sultan. Osman's reign was marked by a number of domestic and foreign policy successes, but in 1622, as a result of a rebellion by the Janissaries, the Sultan was removed from the throne and brutally executed, and, since he did not have time to leave heirs, Mustafa again became the new Ottoman ruler.
But this time he did not stay on the throne for long and a year later he was poisoned. Suspicions of murder fell on Kösem, but they could not prove anything, and their common son Murad with Ahmed I became the new sultan in 1623. From that time on, Kösem became the de facto ruler of the Ottoman Empire.
Kesem Sultan - Queen Mother. Magnificent century. Incredible biography
Valide
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Kösem Sultan. Actress Nurgul Yesilcay
The great, omnipotent, merciless Valide Kösem Sultan. We saw her whole life in the series The Magnificent Century of Kesem. She appeared in the harem of Sultan Ahmed as a very young girl. And this girl was able to achieve unprecedented power. She was able to change the traditions of the Ottoman dynasty, when a brother killed his younger brothers after becoming the Sultan.
In the series Magnificent Century, Kösem was played by various actresses. But the most successful game, in my opinion, was that of Nurgul Yeşilçay. Personally, I liked Kosem in her performance.
Origin of Kösem Sultan
Kösem Sultan bore the title Haseki, becoming the legal wife of the Ottoman Sultan Ahmed I. She twice became Valide. Her two sons were sultans: Murad IV and Ibrahim I. The great Valide Kesem Sultan firmly went down in history as the most influential woman in the history of the Ottoman Empire.
No one knows exactly where she comes from or what family she belongs to. But, according to some sources, Kosem was of Greek origin. Her father was a priest of the Greek island of Tinos. And her real name was Anastasia.
The girl was bought by the Sanjakbey of Bosnia. She was transported to Istanbul. She ended up in the Sultan's castle as a slave. She was about 15 years old then. For her beauty, Anastasia received a new name in the harem: Mehpaker - moon-faced. Then Ahmed gave her another name, Kosem - his favorite.
Ahmed and Kosem. Actors Ekin Koç and Anastasia Tsilimpou
Was a slave, became a mistress
Although Kesem was the Sultan’s most beloved concubine, who was later able to become his legal wife, she was not the first favorite. At that time, Ahmed already had a favorite concubine from the harem, Mahfiruz Khadije Sultan.
Kösem was not even the mother of Sultan Ahmed's first son. Mahfiruz Hatice Sultan was the mother of the first Sehzade Osman, who later became Sultan Osman II. But Kösem was able to oust her not only from the heart of Sultan Ahmed, but also from the palace.
Sultan Ahmed had other concubines who bore him children. The name of one of them is Fatma Khatun. She did not play a special role, so nothing is known about her except her name and the fact that she bore Ahmed a son and a daughter. Her son died at the age of two or three, and her daughter lived to be 30 years old.
Ahmed and Kosem. Actors Ekin Koç and Beren Saat
Despite the fact that the Sultan had a lot of concubines, Kösem was able to win his heart, become his favorite and turn from a slave into a mistress, giving birth to Ahmed 10 children, and maybe more. We can say with one hundred percent certainty that her sons were Sultan Murad IV and Sultan Ibrahim I.
Ahmed loved Kösem very much. He even listened to her and always sought advice. Before Kesem came along, Ahmed never listened to women. He didn’t even respect them very much, believing that women should only give birth and raise children. However, under Ahmed she did not have much power or influence on political affairs.
Sultan Ahmed dies in Kösem's arms. Still from the series The Magnificent Century of Kösem
The family happiness of Kösem and Ahmed did not last long. Ahmed died in 1617 from typhus. After his death, Ahmed's pardoned brother Mustafa found himself on the throne. Kösem was sent to the old palace along with her children and remained there while the empire was ruled first by Sultan Mustafa I, then by Sultan Osman II and again by Sultan Mustafa I.
Both of these sultans reigned for only a short time. During the year of his reign, Sultan Osman II ordered the execution of Kösem şehzade's eldest son Mehmed. The Grand Vizier was preparing an assassination attempt on Kösem’s second son, Shehzade Murad. However, she managed to protect him.
Soon a coup d'état took place and the insane padishah Mustafa I was overthrown. After this coup, the throne passed to the next heir to the throne, Murad IV. Kösem was accused of organizing this coup, but she managed to acquit herself before the judges.
The era of power of Kösem Sultan
Murad's accession to the throne was a turning point for Kesem. She returned to Topkapi Palace with the title Valide.
Sultan Murad IV and Valide Kösem Sultan. Actors Metin Akdulger and Nurgul Yesilcay
Sultan Murad IV was only 11 years old at the time of taking the throne. Due to this, Kösem ruled the empire as the official regent. For almost 10 years, Kösem held power in her hands with the support of her party. She had many supporters among influential personalities and officials. She was highly respected. Kosem was a wise woman, calculating and power-hungry.
Murad IV had no heirs and therefore, after his death, the throne was taken by his only surviving son, Kösem Ibrahim. She retained her title of Valide Sultan and ruled the state in Ibrahim's place for the first years. But then her relationship with her son began to deteriorate. Sultan Ibrahim’s mental state also deteriorated.
Sultan Ibrahim. TV series The Magnificent Century of Kösem. Actor Tugay Mercan
State affairs were also going pretty badly. A crisis began in the country. Ibrahim went completely crazy. He sent his Valide to the Old Palace, and reduced his sisters to the level of servants. Kösem could not forgive him for all this and, together with all her courtiers, decided to remove Ibrahim from the throne. In 1648 he was overthrown. Kösem was so angry with Ibrahim that she turned a blind eye to his murder.
Since Kösem had no more sons, she placed her six-year-old grandson Mehmed on the throne. The title of Valide, according to all the rules, should have passed to his mother Turhan Sultan. But the power-hungry Kösem was able to remove her, becoming regent again. Turhan turned out to be a very ambitious girl who did not want to come to terms and decided to fight.
Turhan Sultan with his son in the series The Magnificent Century of Kösem. Actress Hande Dogandemir
Turhan managed to acquire her own supporters while Kösem was in power. She began to give Kösem strong competition. Endless intrigues and struggles for power began in the palace.
Kösem coped well with her duties as regent. However, unrest began among the people, which arose due to the fact that the Janissaries had influence on the country's politics.
Death Kösem was called Turhan
Along with these events, due to the constant intrigues and resistance of Turhan, Kösem, together with the Janissaries, was going to stage a coup d'etat and poison the young Sultan Mehmed IV in order to place her other grandson Suleiman on the throne. Turhan found out about this and decided not to sit idly by, but to act. To protect her only son, Turhan, along with her loyal subjects, thwarted Kösem's plans and sent executioners to her chambers.
Kosem tried to escape by hiding in the closet. But the Aghas found her. On September 2, 1651, on the night when Sultan Mehmed IV was supposed to die, Kösem Sultan was strangled with a rope from a curtain in her own chambers.
Kösem's body was first sent to the Old Palace. And only after a while she was buried in the Sultanahmet Mosque, next to her beloved Ahmed. Thus ended the era of the Great Kösem.
Although the series The Magnificent Age of Kösem is not historical, I highly recommend that you watch it. You can imagine and feel it yourself. What was the real life like for the sultans and sultanas. Love and death constantly walk side by side. You might love Kösem, or you might hate her. In any case, you will get the opportunity to appreciate the acting of Anastasia Tsilimpiu, Beren Saat and Nurgul Yesilcay, who played Kösem Sultan.
Anastasia Tsilimpiu (left), Beren Saat (right) and Nurgul Yeşilçay (center), as Kösem Sultan.
Kösem as the de facto ruler of Turkey
Murad had only recently turned 11 years old at the time of his accession to the Turkish throne; he could not rule on his own, so his mother became his regent and received the honorary title of Valide Sultan. In practice, this meant that Kösem became the first female ruler of the entire Ottoman Empire. As history confirms, the reign of Kesem Sultan lasted from 1623 to 1632. In 1640, at the age of 28, Sultan Murad IV died without leaving any heirs. After his death, the only survivor of his brothers was Ibrahim, and he became the Turkish Sultan.
Murad IV
Murad IV also has a portrait in which the padishah looks very warlike. The author and date of creation are unknown. However, the artist tried to portray Murad, not as the ruler of the country (in expensive robes and a white turban), but as a warrior (in chain mail and with a sword). The Sultan has very menacing but attractive facial features. In addition, the real Murad is very similar to his serial image.
Murad IV
Kösem during the reign of Sultans Ibrahim I and Mehmed IV
During the first period of the reign of Ibrahim I, Kösem also virtually continued to lead the entire country. But soon relations between them began to deteriorate, largely due to mismanagement. Dissatisfaction with the Sultan resulted in an uprising in 1648, Ibrahim was overthrown by the Janissaries and killed a few days later. His young son Mehmed IV became the new ruler; his mother was a twenty-year-old still inexperienced girl named Turhan. Therefore, his grandmother Kösem became the regent of the young ruler, who managed to remove Turhan from power. However, she did not come to terms with her position, gradually her influence at court began to grow, and as a result, a serious political struggle began between her and Kösem.
Valide Sultan
A year later, as a result of another coup, Kösem’s son, Murad, was on the throne. Having become the mother of the new Sultan of the Ottoman Empire, Kösem received a new title - Valide, and moved from the old palace (in which she stayed during the reign of Mustafa and Osman) to Topkapi Palace. The Sultan turned out to be only eleven years old, Kösem took the reins of power into her hands, and in fact she and her party had power until 1632. Kösem was awarded another title - regent.
Sultan Murad IV Photo: Source
In 1640, Kösem received a terrible “gift” from fate. Her son Murad died, leaving no children behind. The only one who lived to see these times was Kösem’s son, Ibrahim. After the Janissaries again staged a coup and killed Ibrahim in 1648, her grandson, Mehmed, born from the relationship of Ibrahim and Turhan Sultan, was placed on the throne.
Sultan Ibrahim Photo: Source
During Mehmed's reign, Kösem's role increased again. Kösem herself lived in constant stress and anxiety caused by endless scandals and intrigues with the Sultan’s mother, Turhan Sultan. As a result of a conspiracy in 1651, Kösem Sultan was killed. Turhan Sultan is blamed for the death of the lady, who outlived five sultans and ruled the entire empire.
Tags: Ottoman Empire, history of the country, Kösem Sultan
History: Death of Kösem Sultan
After Turhan's power rapidly strengthened, Kösem decided to organize a coup with the help of the Janissaries and remove Mehmed IV, and in his place put her grandson Suleiman, since she had a strong influence on his mother. However, one of Turhan's spies became aware of the impending coup, and she immediately reported it. Understanding the threat, Turhan decided to act proactively. On September 2, 1652, twenty soldiers burst into Kösem Palace, where they strangled her in her own chambers. These are the tragic facts that history contains. The death of Kesem Sultan came as a relief to many of her enemies. She was buried on the same day without any celebrations next to her husband Ahmed I and son Murad IV.
The reign of Mustafa and Osman
After Ahmed's death, his younger brother Mustafa took over the empire. According to traditions established in the Ottoman Empire, during the ascension to the throne of the eldest of the sons, the younger brothers were killed. There is a version that it was Kösem Sultan who saved Mustafa from death. By doing this she tried to ensure the safety of herself and her children.
The favorite of the deceased sultan is sent to one of the remote palaces.
Mustafa's reign lasted only one year. In his place, as a result of the coup, is Ahmed’s first-born son, the son of a Greek woman, Osman. His four-year reign was interrupted by a rebellion, as a result of which the Sultan was killed. Mustafa returns to the throne again.
All this time, Kösem Sultan is away from the court, but she constantly has to prevent attempts to kill her sons, who are the legitimate heirs to the throne. One of the many failed attempts in the biography of Kösem Sultan became known thanks to the memoirs of the Polish ambassador.
Interesting facts from the life of Kosem
Despite her great ambitions and desire for power, Kösem also did not shy away from helping people. It is known that she paid off the debts of those who could go to prison because of this, in addition, during her reign, many places were organized in Istanbul where free food was distributed to the poor. Also, as the story goes, Kesem Sultan helped orphans financially. And for some girls she even found a good match.
Thus, the life story of Kösem Sultan was full of turmoil, secrets and intrigue, but her role for Turkey is difficult to overestimate. Largely thanks to her advice, Ahmed I won a number of important victories, and during her actual reign, serious changes took place in the country's domestic and foreign policy.
In the Sultanate
Having become the Sultan's concubine, Kesem Mahpeyker (she is also known by that name) did not immediately become a favorite. She also failed to give birth to the ruler’s first child. But, gifted with intelligence and insight, she took a different path. Her degree of importance at court and influence increased as she had children. It is known for certain that she became the mother of at least six children. Kesem strengthened her support and acquired her own “party,” including marrying her three daughters to influential Turkish viziers.
The Sultan called the concubine Mahpeyker “moon-faced”
Truth and fiction of the series.
Age of Sultan Ahmed
The age in the film is greatly exaggerated. At the moment of his accession to the throne, Ahmed is shown as a young adult. At the same time, the age difference between Ahmed and his brother Mustafa is quite large - this is clearly visible in the footage. In fact, Ahmed became the future padishah very young. He was only 13 years old. The age difference with Mustafa was not big. Ahmed was born just one year earlier than Mustafa.
As you remember from the plot of the film: having ascended the throne, Ahmed wanted to send Safiye Sultan to the old palace. However, the attempt was unsuccessful and Safiye remained in the palace for several more episodes.
Thanks to this plot device, viewers could watch the harem intrigues for a long time. But in real history, Ahmed, as soon as he became padishah, immediately sent Safiye to the old palace.
Nothing is known for sure about the real name of the Sultana. Her ethnic origin is also unknown.
According to some sources, she was Circassian. The fact that she was the daughter of an Orthodox priest is mentioned by the 16th century Italian traveler Pietro della Valle. But this is just his guess. The exact age of the Sultana is also not known. Most likely she was the same age as Sultan Ahmed the first. As we already wrote above: Ahmed was only 13 years old at the time of his reign.
Kesem talks about his father to Ahmed
- Ahmed, you are now a father yourself. You better understand the love a father feels for his child.
- Why are you talking about this now?
— My father came from far away. He came to the capital to try to find me. But he didn’t have time to meet me. He fell into the hands of Safiya Sultan. He was captured. She threatened me that she would kill my father. She said that she would only let him go if I somehow managed to convince you to leave her in the palace. Despite the fact that I did everything she demanded - Safiye Sultan killed my father.
When the sultana enters the harem, she receives the name Mahpeyker, which means “moon-faced.” Afterwards, Akhmet himself will give her the nickname “Kösem”, which means “most beloved”.
In the series, the Sultan meets a girl under mystical circumstances. First, he falls in love with a portrait of a girl, which seems to beckon the future Sultan. It is this girl that the servants are looking for and stealing her from a prosperous merchant family. Of course, this is an invention of the scriptwriters. After all, in fact, the girl was a gift from the Basnian Pasha.
In the first part of “The Magnificent Century”, the image of Hurrem Sultan was pretty spoiled by the scriptwriters.
From a well-bred and well-mannered girl, she turned into a fatal temptress. But with the image of Ahmed’s main concubine, exactly the opposite happened. According to historians, she was not at all distinguished by her peaceful character and sentimentality.
By the way, according to many historians, Kösem could not boast of education. Most likely she didn't even know how to read. Nevertheless, she is considered the most powerful woman in the entire history of the female sultanate. Thanks to her imperious character and pragmatism, she managed to hold out as Valide Sultan for an incredibly long time. She placed both of her sons on the throne, changing the order of succession.
Quote from dialogue. The moment when Ahmed finds out that her beloved concubine is pregnant.
- So your heart suddenly hurts?
- Right! My heart is hurting. Do you know why?
- Why?
- You are my heart! How can I live without you? And now I have another heart. It's yours! I'm expecting a child from you!
It is interesting that among the secondary characters in the film there are both fictional and real historical figures.
Almost nothing is known in history about the real daughters of Safiye Sultan. Therefore, their images are largely based on assumptions and conjecture. Also, Safiye Sultan did not have a son-in-law named Zulfikar. It is obvious that Pasha is a collective image.
Safiye tells the story of Hurrem's ring
— This ring first belonged to the now deceased Khyurem Sultan. You even tried on her crown. I was hoping to wear it. I heard that even speaking in a whisper, she could drown out the voices of all the women in the harem. Hurrem Sultan was the very embodiment of power. This woman was wise and perspicacious. She lived out her life beautifully and died handing over the ring to Nurban the Sultan. She was powerful too.
Handan Sultan
In the film, there were constant verbal battles between Handan and Safiye, during which Sophie repeatedly called the girl Haseki with a mole. This may have given viewers the impression that Handan actually held the title of Haseki. But in reality, not one woman of Sultan Mehmed the Third bore this title.
In the film, Khandan's story ended sadly. She turned out to have committed suicide. The real facts indicate that she did not kill herself. She died after a long illness. But, there is another version. It was rumored that the disease was caused by poison. She was poisoned by none other than her own son. 4 days before the death of Handan, he appointed a new black eunuch to the harem. However, this version is unlikely.
Quote from dialogue. The last meeting of Handan Sultan and Darvish Pasha.
- Madam, what's the matter?
“I’ll tell you this for the first and last time, Darvish.”
- What does it mean? Are you something...
- Shhh... And remember... It’s hard for me to carry this load alone. It's simply unbearable. Let me tell you everything. Know that you are like the vault of heaven Darvish, like a free bird, and I am a captive. My feelings are like a bottomless well. But I’m not afraid, I’m not afraid of drowning in its waters. I won't betray my feelings, Darvish. I will be faithful to them until my death.
